What is a shadow in psychology? And what is shadow work?
In: 7
According to CG Jung, it is a part of your whole self that is deemed unacceptable by your ego and therefore subconsciously repressed. It harbors traits and tendencies you do not wish to express in your personas.
Personas are adaptations of your self to social circumstances.
Shadow work is integrating these self-condemned tendencies into your personas to release the energy previously used for their repression.
Imagine your persona wants to act lovingly all of the time, but your self tends to naturally produce aggressive feelings. You might work through this by developing an outlet for your aggression by joining a martial arts class or combating the cause of your shadow (ending toxic relationships, healing past trauma, etc.).
Latest Answers